THE government has signed a five year mining concession extension with Wolfram Mining and Processing Limited for tungsten exploitation.The minister of Natural Resources Stanislas Kamanzi signed on behalf of the government while Wolfram Mining and Processing Ltd was represented by its regional director, Jean Malic Kalima. The concession area comprises a mine in Gifurwe, Burera District, in the Northern Province.According to the company’s officials, the mining firm intends to invest about $6 million with the extension and it’s currently conducting a detailed prospecting and feasibility study. “We are pleased to renew the contract as this will give us more time to explore our reserves,” said Kalima.According to Minister Kamanzi, the renewal of the contract is in line with government’s new directives to comply with best mining practices and increased investments in the mining sector. “More investment in this sector can contribute to Rwanda’s economic development especially in balancing imports and exports while creating new jobs,” the Minister of Natural Resources added.Mining is part of government’s strategy to secure raw materials from its own natural resources.Wolfram remains an important mineral for shaping metals, wood, composites, plastics and ceramics as well as for the mining and construction industries.Rwanda is targeting to generate about $400 million from the mining industry by 2017.Last year, the country earned $158 million from mineral trading and this year it expects to generate about $150 million.Rwanda produces about 8,000 to 9,000 tons of mineral compounds every year. The country ranks number eight in the world for un-melted tin which translates into 1.5 per cent of global tin production.Rwanda has since last year adopted a mineral tagging and sealing scheme, internationally recognised as the iTSCi project. The system aims to ensure that the origin of all minerals can be traced. The exercise gained currency after the Dodd-Frank Act was signed into law by the US president in 2009. The act aims at barring “conflict minerals” from gaining access to the US market.iTSCi is an international tin supply chain which aims at ensuring traceability of tin.
